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Colors
Colors are a recurring theme in Breaking Bad. The clothing colors that characters wear represent various themes and their relationships to each other in each scene. Below is a summary of the colors worn by the Breaking Bad characters and the colors' symbolism. The Color Wheel The relationships between the central Breaking Bad characters are analogous to the relationships between colors on the red, yellow, and blue color wheel. For example, the color for Walter's alter ego, Heisenberg, which is often green, is created by mixing the colors of his two closest partners, Sklyer, who often wears blue, and Jesse, who often wears yellow. Further, Heisenberg, is opposed by Hank, who often wears shades of red, orange, or brown, which is located on the opposite side of the color wheel from green. Marie, being the sister of Skyler and the wife of Hank, is represented by purple, which sits between blue and red colors on the color wheel. While Walter's signature product is sky blue, the methylamine made in the show technically should be yellow. The characters' relationships to the drug is represented by their colors' locations relative to yellow on the color wheel. Marie is farthest from the meth drug trade, being neither a user, cook, hired hand, nor narcotics officer, and is represented by purple which is opposite yellow on the color wheel. The characters that are closet to the drug, principally the cooks Walter White, Jesse Pinkman, and Gale Boetticher, all wear yellow jumpsuits in the meth lab and frequently wear yellow in other scenes in the show. Gustavo Fring, while not a meth cook, wears a yellow shirt when working at his fast-food chicken restaurant Los Pollos Hermanos. Skyler White and Hank Schrader, and their colors, represent two end-member relationships to the drug trade and to Walter White. Skyler's blue represents loyalty and peace, while Schrader's red represents violence and anger. Partners who are loyal to Walter White receive money (represented by green, a mixture of blue and yellow), while those who oppose him are met with violence (represented by orange, a mixture of red and yellow). Green Worn by: Walter White Symbolism: Greed, money, growth, envy Secondary color: Formed by blue + yellow Examples: * Walter White wears nothing but a green cooking apron and white underwear when he goes cooking in the RV with Jesse in the first episode . * Holly White is named for the evergreen holly plant. * The surgeons wore green in the operating room where Walter White has his lung cancer surgery. * The sweat lodge robe that Jesse and other guests wear is green. * Skyler, who normally wears blue, wears green after finding Walter's bag of money in the closet of Holly's bedroom, where he had been sleeping just before he signed the divorce papers and moved out . * Walter White wears a bright green shirt when he plants the bomb in the nursing home that kills Gus Fring, after which he says to Skyler, "I won." * Walter White's car is a pale green Pontiac Aztek until he replaces it with a black Chrysler 300 that he buys for his 51st birthday. Blue Worn by: Skyler White, Walter White, Todd Alquist Symbolism: Loyalty, sadness, water, sky, coldness Examples: * Walter and Skyler White both wear dark blue to the birthday party for Elliott Schwartz. * Skyler wears blue while sitting with Walter at his chemotherapy sessons. * Walter White's signature meth formula produces blue crystals known as Blue Sky. * Jane Margolis is wearing blue denim when she dies in her sleep and is buried in a dark blue dress chosen by her father. * Walter and Skyler White wear blue shirts and dark blue pants to the storage facility where Skyler has stored a huge pile of cash. * Sky blue is the color of the ribbons worn by multiple characters in memory of the Wayfarer 515 plane crash. * Both Walter White and Victor, who are both eager to show their loyalty to Gustavo, wear blue in the superlab soon after the death of Gale Boetticher. * Lydia wears a blue shirt when she tries to convince Mike, Walter, and Jesse that she did not put GPS trackers on the Madrigal methylamine containers. * Jesse wears a large blue sweatshirt when he complains to Jane Margolis for acting like she barely knew him in front of her dad. * Walter Jr. wears a dark blue shirt when he visits Walter, who has been badly beaten up, and promises not to tell Skyler about the fight. * Todd Alquist wears blue when working as Walter's assistant in the mobile meth lab. * The color of the Vamonos Pest lettering on the mobile meth lab cases is blue, instead of the usual green and yellow that is found in the business logo. Yellow Worn by: Jesse Pinkman, Gustavo Fring, Gale Boetticher, Walter White, Krazy-8 Symbolism: Optimism, pleasure, caution, cowardice, fear Examples: * Walter White wears a yellow shirt when he confronts teenagers who are making fun of his son in a clothing store. * The chemotherapy chemicals at Walter's cancer treatment center are yellow. * Jesse wears a large yellow coat while selling meth on the street. * Walter is wearing a yellow shirt when he informs Skyler and the family that he's taking some time off from teaching to focus on his cancer treatment. * Jesse Pinkman's sheets were yellow in scenes with his girlfriend Jane Margolis. * Yellow was the color of the protective jumpsuits worn by Walter, Jesse, and Gail in Gustavo Fring's underground meth lab. * The staff at Los Pollos Hermanos wear yellow polo shirts and red chef's aprons. * Gale Boetticher is wearing a yellow shirt over a blue t-shirt when Jesse Pinkman shoots him. * Walter White wears a yellow shirt while Mike's people in prison are being killed to protect Walter's new meth empire. * Marie wears a yellow shirt to the family gathering during which Hank discovers Walter's copy of Leaves of Grass in the bathroom. Brown Worn by: Hank Schrader Symbolism: Earth, humility, stability Composite color: Formed by red + yellow + black Examples: * Hank Schrader wears a brown shirt in his first scene when he's bragging about life in the DEA and showing off his gun to Walter White Jr. Purple Worn by: Marie Schrader Symbolism: Luxury, royalty, protection, safety Secondary color: Formed by red + blue Examples: * Marie wears purple almost exclusively throughout the show with the exceptions of her white hospital lab coat, and occasionally yellow or black. * Marie Schrader's kitchen accessories are purple. * Marie is wearing a purple hoodie and yellow t-shirt when she suggests to Skyler that she take the kids home to repair the family. * While Hank is at home recuperating from being shot by The Cousins, the sheets on his bed are purple. * Skyler White picks out a purple PT Cruiser for Walter White Jr.'s 16th birthday present. The car is meant to be a safe alternative to the red and black Dodge Challenger that his father previously bought him. * Donald Margolis. Jane's protective dad, is wearing a light purple shirt when he first meets Jesse on the porch of his duplex. Orange Worn by: Hank Schrader, Brandon Mayhew, Saul Goodman Symbolism: Humor, laughter, activity, fire, violence, gold Secondary color: Formed by red + yellow Examples: * Gustavo Fring puts on an orange protective jacket and pants in order to protect his clothes when he kills Victor with a box cutter. * Walter Jr. is wearing an orange jacket when he arrives at Walter's apartment and discovers that his father was beaten up in a fight. * Badger is wearing a large orange hoodie while explaining a made-up Star Trek episode about beaming Chekov's guts into space. Pink Worn by: Walter White, Holly White Symbolism: Naiveté, love, acceptance, calm, baby girls Composite color: Red + white Examples: * Pinkman is Jesse's last name. * A partially charred Pink Teddy Bear from the Wayfarer 515 plane crash landed in Walter White's swimming pool. * Walter White wears pink in the same shade as the Pink Teddy Bear when he meets with doctors for a follow-up appointment after his cancer surgery and later that afternoon while sitting next to his pool at the time of the Wayfarer 515 crash. Red Worn by: Walter White, Jesse Pinkman Symbolism: Blood, murder, anger, violence Examples: * Jesse Pinkman wears a red t-shirt and cap on his first visit to see Tuco, who beats him up severely, sending Jesse to the hospital. * The floor of Gustavo Fring's underground meth lab is painted red. * Jesse wears a red shirt with black pants the night of Jane Margolis' death , when he shoots Gale Boetticher , and again when he shoots his way out of the Juarez drug Cartel's hacienda in Mexico . * Hank Schrader wears a long-sleeved red shirt when he confronts Walter and Skyler White , who both wear beige, about Walter's real identity as Heisenberg. Black Worn by: Walter White, Hank Schrader, Jane Margolis, Mike Ehrmantraut Symbolism: Death, guilt, darkness, evil, power, secrecy, deception Examples: * Schwartz is the last name of Eliot and Gretchen, Walter White's former business partners. Schwarz is German for black. * Walter White wears a black jacket and pants with a gray t-shirt when he visits Tuco and tricks him by bringing explosive fulminated mercury disguised as meth. * Tomás Cantillo is wearing a black hoodie when he pretends to playfully ride his black bike in circles around Combo and then shoots Combo in the back multiple times. * Skyler White is wearing a black dress when she knocks a can of pens off her desk to lure Ted Beneke into her office. * Hank wears all black while he hunts down Jesse's RV . * Walter wears a black shirt and pants when he lies to Jesse about the disappearance of Mike Ehrmantraut. * Walter is dressed in all black when he meets with Lydia to get the names of Mike's men. After Lydia gives him the names and leaves, Walter picks up his hat to reveal the vile of ricin, indicating that he was planning to kill Lydia with it. Gray Worn by: Jesse Pinkman, Hank Schrader, Skinny Pete Symbolism: Depression, illness, guilt, silver, revenge Composite color: Formed by black + white Examples: * Gray Matter was the name of the company formed by Walter White and Eliot and Gretchen Schwartz, as a play on their last names. * Walter is wearing a gray shirt when he calls Skyler at work to apologize for causing a scene with Hank and Walter Jr. at his party the night before. * The Cousins, Leonel and Marco Salamanca, wear silver gray suits with black shirts while they hunt down Walter White and, later, Hank Schrader. * Tio Salamanca wears a silver gray suit when he shoots Max Arciniega by surprise from behind. * Gustavo Fring wears a silver gray suit and black shirt when he kills the Juarez Cartel by poisoning them. White Worn by: Skyler White, Marie Schrader Symbolism: Innocence, purity, perfection, lightness, openness, honesty Examples: * White is the last name of Walter White and his family. * Jane's last name, Margolis, is Hebrew for 'pearl,' which is often white but may also be black. * Combo is wearing white when he is shot in the back by a kid on a bike. Beige Worn by: Walter White, Skyler White Symbolism: Not quite innocent, a little bit dirty, neutral, not a threat Composite color: White + some yellow + possibly some red Examples: * Skyler White is wearing a long pale beige sweater when she is almost arrested for the theft of the tiara that Marie gave for her baby shower. * Walter and Skyler White wear beige at the car wash after Walter has given up his meth business. * Walter White wears beige when he confronts Hank about planting a GPS device on his car. Multicolor Combinations Worn by: Walter White Jr., Saul Goodman Symbolism: Conlicted emotions, mixed feelings, confusion, multiple meanings Examples: * Walter White Jr. often wears striped shirts with multiple colors. * Hank Schrader wear a red shirt with a black jacket and pants when he visits Walter White, who is wearing beige, in his chemistry classroom about a gas mask belonging to the school that was found in the desert. * The colors of Jesse's duplex are yellow and red. * The stripes on Jesse's RV are yellow, orange, and red. * The tarps used by Vamonos Pest, which is used as a cover for Walter's mobile meth lab business, are green and yellow. * The colors in the logo of A1A Car Wash, run by Skyler White, are blue and white. * Saul Goodman wears a beige suit over a pink shirt and purple tie when he visits Skyler White to tell her that Ted Beneke used part of the money she gave him to buy a luxury car. * Walter White's master bathroom has yellow and purple walls. * The curtains in the White household are striped horizontally with yellow, brown, and sky blue. * Saul Goodman wears a green shirt and orange and blue striped tie when Jesse Pinkman drops off $5 million in "blood money" that he wants to be given away. * Walter White wears a beige, brown, and sky blue robe soon after Hank inspects his chemistry lab for missing lab equipment and again when he finds Hank's GPS tracker on his car . No color Worn by: Walter White Symbolism: Nakedness, transparency, disappearances, the invisible Examples: * In the opening scene of the first episode Walter White is naked, except for a pair of white underwear and a gas mask, and erratically driving an RV through the desert. He soon pulls the RV to the side of the road and records a confession to his family on a video camera because he thinks he about to be arrested or killed. * After escaping from his kidnapper Tuco, Walter White walks naked through a grocery store and pretends not to remember where he's been after he was missing for a few days. * The windshield of Walter White's Pontiac Aztek is broken three separate times in incidents that are a direct or indirect result of his drug activities. Production Trivia *Vince Gilligan's name is yellow in the opening credits to Breaking Bad. *Gilligan has stated that the final episode will be "polarizing." Related References Infographic: Colorizing Walter White's Decay Breaking Bad Bar Codes The Colorful World of Breaking Bad es:Color Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan on colour theory, the hardest scene to write and the looming finale Category:Symbolism